Three in three. RIP.

[Roper_imp]

I was an avid cyclist for many years. I used to commute by bicycle. No matter which way I went, I was always on the side of a busy 4-lane for at least a little of the way. Even with a flag, blinking lights, and a day-glo vest, idiots would pass me within inches. After several near misses and a clip which forced me off the road and thankfully only left me bruised, I stopped commuting by bicycle. So I understand the feeling. I don't have it on a motorcycle. Yet. When I do, the next step might be a sidecar

[the Ferret]

5 killed at once when a pickup truck hit a group of Bicyclists yesterday in Michigan

Doesn't matter what you are doing, when the big guy calls, he never gets a busy signal.

[Razor]

5 killed at once when a pickup truck hit a group of Bicyclists yesterday in Michigan

Doesn't matter what you are doing, when the big guy calls, he never gets a busy signal.

NW side of Kalamazoo. About 30 miles north of me. Very tragic. 4 others were injured. Police will probably let out more details today. The driver is in custody.

[Haystack_imp]

I've never felt spooked by riding but we've had three fatal motorcycle accidents in the past three days. My girlfriend and I rode past the first one on Saturday -- a car pulled out from an intersection to enter a busy four-lane highway and never saw the Harley rider and his pillion rumbling down the road. When I rode past the scene, the helmetless rider was in a fetal position in the middle of the highway, being tended to by a first responder (emergency crews were still enroute). He died at the scene, and his passenger was life-flighted to the hospital. His wrecked bike was in a tangle in the middle of the road, the headlight still on, but hardly recognizable. I was quite shaken by the sight. Then another fatality on Sunday, and yet another one earlier today. Now I'm questioning how much I could get for my bikes in trade for a Miata. Someone please talk me off the ledge!

Perhaps this is why there have never been so many low-mileage used motorcycles on the market. I'm seeing many beautiful machines for sale with very few miles-maybe the rider was enthusiastic about riding-took a safety course, and in no time had a close encounter that caused them to re-evaluate their decision to ride.

It seems that every year I have a "close call" with a cage or big truck that would cause me to re-evaluate my decision to ride but since I've been riding for about 45 years I have a greater background with which to put each "close call" into perspective.

My latest was last Sunday on my return trip from the kcmotoshow. I was westbound on I-70 when the 80mph flow of traffic came to a halt in the span of about 1/2 mile in a construction zone. When stopping I leave at least a car space between myself and the car ahead and one eye on the mirror...sure enough, a Nissan sports-something came up at an alarming rate so I eased over to the left "out of the way". The sports car (with ABS I assume) locked up it's tires and came to a squealing halt about even with where I'd previously was parked, but had managed to move to the right to avoid me. It must've put the p**p up his a** because when traffic started moving again he followed behind at a much greater distance. It was a matter of experience for me, but for a new rider the same close call might cause them to stop riding. (I didn't think that ABS would cause the tires to screech on pavement).

Automobile operators, I believe, would be better drivers if they had motorcycle riding experience.

Anyhoo, FWIW.

[Motogeezer1949_imp]

I'll be happy if I cash it in while riding. I do hate hearing tires squeal behind me when stopped at a traffic light tho.....

[LongRanger_imp]

I've lost three very close friends and long-time riding buddies:

- The first was passing traffic over the double-yellow. He didn't yield to an oncoming pickup truck.
- The second is similar to Haystack's near-miss. Came to a stop on the interstate and was rear-ended by a drunk. The drunk was sentenced to five years in prison and is already out. Until this year, DUI in Colorado was a misdemeanor, not a felony. And of course, you can legally possess pot. But no beer sales on Sunday! I digress.
- The third suffered a heart attack while attempting a SaddleSore 1000. I suppose it could have happened at home instead, watching TV.

I've been riding about 45 years too, but sometimes it feels like one year of experience, 45 times. It's always something out there. Sigh.

[Ulvetanna_imp]

I've lost three very close friends and long-time riding buddies:

- The first was passing traffic over the double-yellow. He didn't yield to an oncoming pickup truck.
- The second is similar to Haystack's near-miss. Came to a stop on the interstate and was rear-ended by a drunk. The drunk was sentenced to five years in prison and is already out. Until this year, DUI in Colorado was a misdemeanor, not a felony. And of course, you can legally possess pot. But no beer sales on Sunday! I digress.
- The third suffered a heart attack while attempting a SaddleSore 1000. I suppose it could have happened at home instead, watching TV.

I've been riding about 45 years too, but sometimes it feels like one year of experience, 45 times. It's always something out there. Sigh.

Now that is a very, very wise observation. Anyone thinks they have all this figured out is asking for trouble. Every day is different and there is no end to skill-building or strategy.

I've lost three very close friends and long-time riding buddies:

- The first was passing traffic over the double-yellow. He didn't yield to an oncoming pickup truck.
- The second is similar to Haystack's near-miss. Came to a stop on the interstate and was rear-ended by a drunk. The drunk was sentenced to five years in prison and is already out. Until this year, DUI in Colorado was a misdemeanor, not a felony. And of course, you can legally possess pot. But no beer sales on Sunday! I digress.
- The third suffered a heart attack while attempting a SaddleSore 1000. I suppose it could have happened at home instead, watching TV.

I've been riding about 45 years too, but sometimes it feels like one year of experience, 45 times. It's always something out there. Sigh.

Saw a Miata once, flipped over after running off a turn way up on my "loop" of 220 miles. Can't imaging the occupants fared well, no roll bar.

Now, I have a Jeep Wrangler, late-model, huge roll cage, load of air bags, and the traction contral and ABS are phenomenal. Compared to the one I had in 1994, unbelievable especially off-road. Probably the safest vehicle I ever owned but of course it doesn't corner quite as well as a regular car.

Rather be on a motorcycle than strapped into a convertible.

I've never felt spooked by riding but we've had three fatal motorcycle accidents in the past three days. My girlfriend and I rode past the first one on Saturday -- a car pulled out from an intersection to enter a busy four-lane highway and never saw the Harley rider and his pillion rumbling down the road. When I rode past the scene, the helmetless rider was in a fetal position in the middle of the highway, being tended to by a first responder (emergency crews were still enroute). He died at the scene, and his passenger was life-flighted to the hospital. His wrecked bike was in a tangle in the middle of the road, the headlight still on, but hardly recognizable. I was quite shaken by the sight. Then another fatality on Sunday, and yet another one earlier today. Now I'm questioning how much I could get for my bikes in trade for a Miata. Someone please talk me off the ledge!

Perhaps this is why there have never been so many low-mileage used motorcycles on the market. I'm seeing many beautiful machines for sale with very few miles-maybe the rider was enthusiastic about riding-took a safety course, and in no time had a close encounter that caused them to re-evaluate their decision to ride.

It seems that every year I have a "close call" with a cage or big truck that would cause me to re-evaluate my decision to ride but since I've been riding for about 45 years I have a greater background with which to put each "close call" into perspective.

My latest was last Sunday on my return trip from the kcmotoshow. I was westbound on I-70 when the 80mph flow of traffic came to a halt in the span of about 1/2 mile in a construction zone. When stopping I leave at least a car space between myself and the car ahead and one eye on the mirror...sure enough, a Nissan sports-something came up at an alarming rate so I eased over to the left "out of the way". The sports car (with ABS I assume) locked up it's tires and came to a squealing halt about even with where I'd previously was parked, but had managed to move to the right to avoid me. It must've put the p**p up his a** because when traffic started moving again he followed behind at a much greater distance. It was a matter of experience for me, but for a new rider the same close call might cause them to stop riding. (I didn't think that ABS would cause the tires to screech on pavement).

Automobile operators, I believe, would be better drivers if they had motorcycle riding experience.

Anyhoo, FWIW.

Oh yes, ABS is over-rated and I thank you for posting that anecdote. Yes, all cars have had ABS for decades so unless it was malfunctioning (very, very unlikely) it was working as designed, that is to say, not as well as expected.

Gotta follow that up with one of mine.

Place where two major freeways converge, lots of merging, but speeds about 70 mph. An Altima 2.5 maybe 200 feet in front of me, one lane over to the right (about six lanes here) suddenly slams on the brakes because another car made a quick feint as if to change lanes. The second driver realized his mistake and pulled back into his lane but the Altima driver just slammed on the brakes and held them on, just like they teach in Driver's Education. It was not an effective action.

First the tires started to smoke, and then the car began to drift and spin -- not flip and roll over, but swap ends with all four tires smoking.

So it did this a couple of times, first spinning CCW and of course it blocked my lane.

I was very fortunately riding the bike that is now my track bike, a GSX-R 750 with s/s lines and HH pads. One finger, I brought the bike just short of lockup and just held it there and watched to see what would happen. No way around the car, Armco to my left, traffic on my right.

Now by this time the car is only about 30 feet in front of me and the guy is still frozen on the brakes. So now the car reverses the spin direction to clockwise and starts to squeeze me right over but fortunately the whole incident is beginning to lose velocity.

That car drifted right at me and at the last instant I just released enough brake to get the bike turned and slipped around on the left.

I could have kicked the bumper as I went by. It was still spinning and smoking when I checked my mirrors and got off at my exit, which was the next up.

I checked the news next day and no accidents were reported so, I guess everyone got slowed down OK.

Yep, stuff happens and ABS ain't all it's cracked up to be. Don't expect it to save you whether it's on your bike or the other guy's car. Ride defensively.

[Offroad]

I've lost three very close friends and long-time riding buddies:

- The first was passing traffic over the double-yellow. He didn't yield to an oncoming pickup truck.
- The second is similar to Haystack's near-miss. Came to a stop on the interstate and was rear-ended by a drunk. The drunk was sentenced to five years in prison and is already out. Until this year, DUI in Colorado was a misdemeanor, not a felony. And of course, you can legally possess pot. But no beer sales on Sunday! I digress.
- The third suffered a heart attack while attempting a SaddleSore 1000. I suppose it could have happened at home instead, watching TV.

I've been riding about 45 years too, but sometimes it feels like one year of experience, 45 times. It's always something out there. Sigh.

Now that is a very, very wise observation. Anyone thinks they have all this figured out is asking for trouble. Every day is different and there is no end to skill-building or strategy.

I've lost three very close friends and long-time riding buddies:

- The first was passing traffic over the double-yellow. He didn't yield to an oncoming pickup truck.
- The second is similar to Haystack's near-miss. Came to a stop on the interstate and was rear-ended by a drunk. The drunk was sentenced to five years in prison and is already out. Until this year, DUI in Colorado was a misdemeanor, not a felony. And of course, you can legally possess pot. But no beer sales on Sunday! I digress.
- The third suffered a heart attack while attempting a SaddleSore 1000. I suppose it could have happened at home instead, watching TV.

I've been riding about 45 years too, but sometimes it feels like one year of experience, 45 times. It's always something out there. Sigh.

Saw a Miata once, flipped over after running off a turn way up on my "loop" of 220 miles. Can't imaging the occupants fared well, no roll bar.

Now, I have a Jeep Wrangler, late-model, huge roll cage, load of air bags, and the traction contral and ABS are phenomenal. Compared to the one I had in 1994, unbelievable especially off-road. Probably the safest vehicle I ever owned but of course it doesn't corner quite as well as a regular car.

Rather be on a motorcycle than strapped into a convertible.

I've never felt spooked by riding but we've had three fatal motorcycle accidents in the past three days. My girlfriend and I rode past the first one on Saturday -- a car pulled out from an intersection to enter a busy four-lane highway and never saw the Harley rider and his pillion rumbling down the road. When I rode past the scene, the helmetless rider was in a fetal position in the middle of the highway, being tended to by a first responder (emergency crews were still enroute). He died at the scene, and his passenger was life-flighted to the hospital. His wrecked bike was in a tangle in the middle of the road, the headlight still on, but hardly recognizable. I was quite shaken by the sight. Then another fatality on Sunday, and yet another one earlier today. Now I'm questioning how much I could get for my bikes in trade for a Miata. Someone please talk me off the ledge!

Perhaps this is why there have never been so many low-mileage used motorcycles on the market. I'm seeing many beautiful machines for sale with very few miles-maybe the rider was enthusiastic about riding-took a safety course, and in no time had a close encounter that caused them to re-evaluate their decision to ride.

It seems that every year I have a "close call" with a cage or big truck that would cause me to re-evaluate my decision to ride but since I've been riding for about 45 years I have a greater background with which to put each "close call" into perspective.

My latest was last Sunday on my return trip from the kcmotoshow. I was westbound on I-70 when the 80mph flow of traffic came to a halt in the span of about 1/2 mile in a construction zone. When stopping I leave at least a car space between myself and the car ahead and one eye on the mirror...sure enough, a Nissan sports-something came up at an alarming rate so I eased over to the left "out of the way". The sports car (with ABS I assume) locked up it's tires and came to a squealing halt about even with where I'd previously was parked, but had managed to move to the right to avoid me. It must've put the p**p up his a** because when traffic started moving again he followed behind at a much greater distance. It was a matter of experience for me, but for a new rider the same close call might cause them to stop riding. (I didn't think that ABS would cause the tires to screech on pavement).

Automobile operators, I believe, would be better drivers if they had motorcycle riding experience.

Anyhoo, FWIW.

Oh yes, ABS is over-rated and I thank you for posting that anecdote. Yes, all cars have had ABS for decades so unless it was malfunctioning (very, very unlikely) it was working as designed, that is to say, not as well as expected.

Gotta follow that up with one of mine.

Place where two major freeways converge, lots of merging, but speeds about 70 mph. An Altima 2.5 maybe 200 feet in front of me, one lane over to the right (about six lanes here) suddenly slams on the brakes because another car made a quick feint as if to change lanes. The second driver realized his mistake and pulled back into his lane but the Altima driver just slammed on the brakes and held them on, just like they teach in Driver's Education. It was not an effective action.

First the tires started to smoke, and then the car began to drift and spin -- not flip and roll over, but swap ends with all four tires smoking.

So it did this a couple of times, first spinning CCW and of course it blocked my lane.

I was very fortunately riding the bike that is now my track bike, a GSX-R 750 with s/s lines and HH pads. One finger, I brought the bike just short of lockup and just held it there and watched to see what would happen. No way around the car, Armco to my left, traffic on my right.

Now by this time the car is only about 30 feet in front of me and the guy is still frozen on the brakes. So now the car reverses the spin direction to clockwise and starts to squeeze me right over but fortunately the whole incident is beginning to lose velocity.

That car drifted right at me and at the last instant I just released enough brake to get the bike turned and slipped around on the left.

I could have kicked the bumper as I went by. It was still spinning and smoking when I checked my mirrors and got off at my exit, which was the next up.

I checked the news next day and no accidents were reported so, I guess everyone got slowed down OK.

Yep, stuff happens and ABS ain't all it's cracked up to be. Don't expect it to save you whether it's on your bike or the other guy's car. Ride defensively.

Reminds me of my closest call 40 years ago, seems like it was yesterday.

Popped over a hill crest and a car was dead stopped to make a left hand turn.

Both brakes locked, I just knew I was going to flip over that car. At the last moment I released the brakes and narrowly missed the right rear bumper with my left leg. It was so close my crash bars on my CB350 caught the bumper. I thought for sure it would flip or turn me into the car. Luckily the welds broke on the crash bars and I came out without a scratch.

I just try to block it out now....like they say, when dodging a bullet, an inch is as good as a mile ;-)

[the Ferret]

ABS wheels shouldn't lock up and skid hence the name ANTI-LOCK. When the system senses a wheel lock up, it releases and grabs again. and continues that cyle until the wheel stops spinning. If you are on a slick surface you can usually feel it cycling wham-wham-wham-wham, especially in your car.

However ABS equipped vehicles still take a certain amount of distance to stop, and it may be longer than someone who is an expert and knows what they are doing after much track time (Like Ulve).

But for common folk, the normal instinct is to stomp (car) or grab and stomp (motorcycle) the brakes in which case for THAT person ABS is a great idea.

I like to give this example. You come around a curve, you are travelling 60 mph, and there is a car stopped in the road ahead. Oh crap ...............

A bike without ABS may stop in (example) 260 feet with an expert rider that knows what he is doing (like Ulve with lots of track time).

A bike equipped with ABS may stop in 275 feet, whether you know what you are doing or not, because that's what it is designed to do. It takes a little longer to stop, but you don't have to be an expert to use it.

A bike without ABS may take 300 feet, or it may skid and low side, or skid and highside if you are not an expert and don't know what you are doing.

Now if that stopped car is 240 feet away, even the guy that knows what he is doing, without ABS, is going to hit the car ..BAM! (Because at 60 mph it takes him 260 feet to stop and he doesn't have that much room, he's needs another 20 feet).

So too is the guy with ABS whether he knows what he is doing or not. BAM! (because it takes him 275 feet to stop)

Who knows what is going to happen with the guy without ABS, that is not an expert, and doesn't know what he is doing (it's a crap shoot, but chances are high that he is either going to crash before he gets to the car or just hit the car). SCRAAAAPE...BAM!

Now if the car is 280 feet away BOTH the guy that knows what he is doing and the guy with the ABS that may, or may not know what they are doing, are going to stop safely (because they can stop in 275 feet or less). WHEW!

But the guy wthout ABS, that is not an expert and doesn't know what he is doing, is going to grab the front brake and stomp the rear brake, lock up both wheels and skid. A skidding motorcycle takes a long time to stop, much longer than the ABS equipped bike or the bike with the rider that knows exactly what he is doing (even if the rider manages to keep it on both wheels). A skidding motorcycle is an out of control motorcycle, usually out of shape and at the mercy of no traction. In all likelyhood he is going to hit the back end of the car. UUUURRRRRR.....BAM!

If the car is 265 feet away, the expert without ABS is going to get his bike stopped safely with 5 feet to spare, while the guy with ABS that may or may not know what he is doing is still going to hit the car ..BAM! (because the expert stops in 260 feet but the ABS takes a little further, 275 feet).

The question people have to ask themselves, and answer honestly is, do they they have the skill and mental acuity, to stop the motorcycle properly before it starts skidding. If the answer is no...you should probably have ABS.

Throw in rain/wet roads, sand, antifreeze, ice, whatever in the mix and the situation changes. It takes a certain and rare skill set to handle those issues properly in which case MOST people would be better off with ABS. In fact if you are not an expert and don't have a lot of track time, you are almost always better off with ABS when you encounter an emergency stopping situation. IMO

still may not save your bacon, but for most it's the best shot they have.

[emptysea]

Ahh.. Another ABS discussion. LOL My only disagreement with The Ferret is that he gives too much credit to the skilled rider. I read a comparison test (or saw a youtube video) a couple of years ago where a professional rider tested an ABS bike and a non-ABS bike in wet and dry conditions. If I recall, the rider stopped the non-ABS bike faster than the ABS bike 2 of 6 times on dry pavement, but 0 out of 6 times on wet pavement. I forget the starting speed, but it wasn't 60...probably more like 25mph. One could argue that the longer the distance on dry pavement, the better the odds that the expert rider on a non-ABS bike will stop faster. In the end, though, darn few of us have the skill or the reflexes to bring a non-ABS bike to a controlled stop faster than an ABS bike.